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Woodbridge Joins Program That Promotes Residents Living Where They Work
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Thursday, August 28, 2008
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Home News Tribune
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By Alyssa Giachino
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Owning a home may be within reach for more families through the
township's participation in a state program that gives low-interest
mortgages and helps with downpayments.
Woodbridge became the third municipality in the state to partner with
"Live Where You Work," a state program that helps people purchase homes
in the municipality where they are employed.
"It's a really simple idea, but one that makes so much sense," said
Marge Della Vecchia, executive director of the state Housing and
Mortgage Finance Agency. "These are true, traditional 30-year,
fixed-point mortgages.
A 1950s-era three-bedroom home in Menlo Park Terrace listed at $270,000
provided the backdrop for a press conference Wednesday announcing
Woodbridge's participation in the program. Mayor John McCormac, who grew
up in the neighborhood, was joined by HMFA staff, state Sen. Joseph
Vitale and state Department of Community Affairs Commissioner Joseph
Doria.
McCormac said potential participants in the program include municipal
workers, employees who commute into the township for jobs at the Hess
Corp. or Woodbridge Center mall, and younger township residents who are
hoping to buy their first house.
"It's good to have people with Woodbridge roots live in the town," he
said. "It solidifies a sense of community."
The basis for the homebuyer incentive program is a belief that
communities are stronger when people work close to home, and that
quality of life is improved when commuting distances are shorter.
"Live Where You Work" was launched earlier this year with the support of
Gov. Jon S. Corzine, and already has 16 participants in Newark and
Jersey City with mortgages averaging around $135,000.
The program offers to help with a downpayment and closing costs equal to
5 percent on a first mortgage loan. Through the HMFA, buyers can get a
30- or 40-year fixed-rate mortgage.
HMFA determines eligibility, and the guidelines in Woodbridge state that
a family of three would have to earn less than $110,000 annually, and
could consider buying a house for around $430,000.
HMFA Director Della Vecchia said the slow decline in the real estate
market in the state can work to the advantage of first-time home buyers,
which in turn can benefit communities if people work and live in the
same municipality.
"When someone lives in a community, they are engaged in much more than
the four walls of their home," she said. "We watch out for each other
when we live nearby."
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